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Saturday, 27 April 2013

The Friends of Molesey Library have had discussions with Molesey Art Society about displaying local artists' work at the library.

The idea would be to give Art Society members a public place to showcase their work, and for library users to have added reason to come to the library as they will be able to enjoy different paintings that will be on display.

However the first step is to secure funds for picture hanging equipment, and the Friends have applied to the RC Sherrif Trust for help. RC Sherrif was a playwright who lived in Esher, and a trust was established after his death in 1975 to ‘advance and develop the arts’ in Elmbridge.

Chairman of the Friends, Pauline Morozgalska, said: "A very positive link has been made with the Molesey Art Society whose members are keen to display some of their work at Molesey Library. However, a display system is required and neither the Art Society nor the Friends are able to earmark funds for this project at the present time, therefore we are submitting a request to RC Sherriff for a capital grant. If successful it would give local artists the opportunity to showcase their work in a local public building, and bring new visitors to the library."

In April Molesey Arts Society held it’s 54th annual exhibition, at St Alban’s School in Beauchamp Road (pictured above), where work from its 250 members was showcased.

Sunday, 14 April 2013

There was a reunion of old friends when John Coope invited a school friend, William Nicholson, to a meet the Author Event in March. The evening was a sell-out and a huge coup for Molesey Library as Bill is a well-established and popular author and an acclaimed screenwriter.

He is a very entertaining and engaging speaker who has written a number of books ranging from teenage fantasy to his latest publication “Motherland”, the fourth book in his Sussex novels series. These books take a look at the trials, tribulations and the emotions of the lives of the middle England – he drew parallels with works by authors such as Jane Austen. Writing novels gives him his greatest pleasure.

However, the work that enables him to write for fun is screenwriting and his work in this area is impressive. It includes films such as “Shadowlands” and “Gladiator”, for both of which he was nominated for an Oscar, and more recently the blockbuster “Les Miserables”. He described scriptwriting a tough process as ideas are rejected, he can feel intimidated and marginalised so it is not a chosen route for many writers but he felt that the experience was positive and has made him more resilient. The audience was fascinated to hear about this aspect of his work.

Bill had just finished working as the screenwriter for the film “Mandela”, a project he clearly enjoyed and is looking forward to the public reaction when it is released here later this year.